The Earth After Rebirth

The system was true to its word, the update went on for exactly ten minutes. Most of the players who were being given the opportunity to use Kaos were on the ground, sweating and panting like they had run a marathon around the earth.

Only a handful of them were still standing and all of those were actually guardians. The number of them had grown significantly since the last time they gave the true blood potions to Viktor and some members of Chasing Madness.

Hiro had been working overtime to not only train those whom can create armour, weapons and potions but also mass producing the true blood potion to expand their chances of winning.

He'd made over five hundred and was successful to about three hundred of them which was an impressive feat considering how hard brewing the potion was. The individuals were carefully chosen from the weekly fights they agreed to host. Of course Kiro wasn't around, busy jumping from world to world, recruiting.

When the update ceased, the world of Asgard still looked the same not accounting for the deafening silence that followed when people were still disoriented from their energy being changed to Kaos. There was a louder silence however, the NPC, all of them were truly gone.

The sounds from his surroundings were slowly coming into focus, people were coming out of their shocked state, glad and deeply traumatised from dying thousands of times in a short span of ten minutes. Kiro didn't doubt that to them, this ten minutes must have felt like eternity.

"I hope we have time to recuperate and get used to the power they were given before these hoards starting filing in." Kiro commented absentmindedly. Continue your journey on empire

"You think they will be that fair and kind?" Nikolai asked, a little worried that his state of mind was not at all into this.

There was still his father to be buried, there was still his little brother that's yet to be born. He even doubted that he deserved to be in the child's life since he killed their father or was the reason he was dead anyway.

Perhaps the child would grow up to resent him for taking away a chance to have a father in his life. Even though he had done him a favour, since their father was not a loving man. With him in his life, it was likely that he'd grow up to be as miserable as Nikolai.

Sekani had told him they would release the proof that implicated even his father in a couple of days to give him some time to get his things in order.

Nikolai was certain that the Black fortune would be repossessed by the government leaving his little brother and the mother to be stranded. That kid would be the only family, apart from the mother, he would have.

With all of this, there was naturally a lot on his mind. He half wished for Kiro to tell him off, a reason to log off the game and sort his life out, he needed just a day. Just a single day.

"You know you can log off right? Dad told me a lot of what happened, I know you have some stuff to take care of. You don't need to make yourself strong for us, we're your friends Nikolai, use us as your crutch when you can't walk on your own!" Kiro tried to reassure him, he was part of those who remained standing after the update.

"That obvious?" Nikolai chuckled lightly.

"I mean not really you're hiding it pretty well." Kiro answered sarcastically which made Nikolai laugh, genuinely laugh.

"This is more important isn't it?"

"The world out there is also important, trust me, I'll hold the fort until you come back, alright?"

They both could see Hiro and Felix walking over to them, looking like they'd been taken by their limbs and smashed onto the group a million times over but at least they were standing, at least they weren't on the ground having difficulties to get up like most of the people there.

"You guys look so serious, what you're talk—"

"Are you avoiding me?" Felix cut off Hiro and confronted Nikolai, he was trying so hard to not make this about himself but he was failing miserably.

He felt beyond betrayed, their relationship as one of servant and master but they'd grown to be very close friends and Felix was starting to get used to the fact that Nikolai wanted them to be equals and then he went and did this, blindsided him with something so important.

Perhaps he felt like he wanted to be a part of it because he was raised by the Black estate to be who he was too. Maybe he wanted to be there when everything was being laid to rest.

"Look Felix I'm sorry alright? It wasn't planned, I didn't think Kiro's dad would even let me go with them as myself, I couldn't ask them accommodate you too." He said a little annoyed that he had to explain himself.

Felix gave him a scornful look, "you're annoyed? you're annoyed? Do you even understand that I needed closure too?" There was no emotions in his voice as he asked.

Nikolai was confused at first, you could see it on his face, the creased forhead and slightly opened eyes, as though be was trying to solve a mathematical equation.

Then bit by bit, it all fell into place, the pieces, he didn't need Felix to fill them up for him. In his road for revenge, he had completely neglected the fact that Felix suffered as much as he did as a servant boy in the Black estate. He was the way he was because of the way he was raised and by the order of his father.

It dawned on him that it was never just about him and his father, it wasn't just his revenge, Felix was as damaged by the Black family as he was.

"Felix, I'm truly sorry. I was about to log off yo take care of some stuff, care to come with?" He looked to Kiro, "if you can spare him?"

"Of course!"